Every day we are bombarded with all kinds of tips and diets aimed at promoting a healthy lifestyle and helping us achieve our ideal body. However, not all the information shared is accurate or comes from reliable sources, particularly from professionals trained in clinical nutrition. Furthermore, not all products that claim to be healthy actually are.
Let’s start with breakfast. Is it crucial to eat this meal? Not necessarily. Recommendations should be tailored to the individual. Each case is unique, and the key is to maintain consistency in our eating routine, since irregularity is linked to poorer metabolic health and weight gain or weight stagnation. However, if you’re in favor of breakfast, there’s the argument that digestion is better in the morning. This is because, at this time of day, we produce more enzymes, have better carbohydrate tolerance, and exhibit lower insulin resistance.
A healthy breakfast, regardless of what time of day you eat it, should include various nutrient groups, such as macronutrients. The presence of healthy fats and protein is crucial. Choose a food that will satisfy your hunger and keep you feeling full throughout the day. If you include bread and cereal in this meal, you’re not making a good choice. One of the best foods for breakfast—if you’re not vegan—is eggs. Eggs are rich in protein, don’t raise cholesterol, promote satiety, and contain no sugar, flour, or hydrogenated fat.
The first meal of the day should be treated like a light lunch, during which we should avoid processed foods. If you’re not a fan of eggs, you can opt for some oatmeal pancakes, as long as you don’t add sugar and use a healthy fat, such as coconut oil. For those who prefer to have breakfast at noon, salads—or even soups—are a great option.
But what if we choose to fast—something that has become a trend and is of great clinical interest? Scientific evidence shows that longer periods of fasting may have an impact not only on weight loss but also on the body’s ability to repair itself. The well-known idea that it’s necessary to eat every three hours is no longer up to date and does not, by any means, optimize health.
Intermittent fasting offers immense benefits across various aspects of our body, whether in neuron production, organ rest, increased growth hormone levels, cellular cleansing, or the burning of fat reserves. Therefore, this practice is not only associated with weight management but also with longevity itself. There are several variations of this meal schedule, but the most popular is a 16-hour fast followed by an 8-hour window during which you can eat. Still, this pattern should be incorporated into our routines gradually and tailored to our individual characteristics and needs.
When breaking an intermittent fast—for example, by having breakfast as part of an earlier morning routine—the meal should be nutritious. Although white bread is considered a “typically Portuguese” food and is commonly found on dining tables, the amount of refined sugar it contains makes it an unwise choice to start the day. Refined salt, fried foods, and burnt fats—such as those found on toast—should be avoided.
For this reason, it’s important to pay attention to labels when shopping. Dark bread is a good example of this, since its color leads people to believe it’s a whole-grain product—which isn’t exactly the case. In most cases, it is made with refined flour, is highly processed, and—in addition to providing no nutritional value—will cause a spike in blood sugar. Therefore, true whole-grain bread can only be made from whole-grain flours and, ideally, through a slow fermentation process.
Being informed about the characteristics of the foods we eat and the eating habits we adopt is half the battle when it comes to promoting a healthy lifestyle, which leads to better health and the body we want.
Balance is the key word to keep in mind throughout the process. Too much restriction or too much relaxation will not lead to the desired results. Take care of yourself, keeping moderation in mind and under the guidance of a healthcare professional. Always.
Opinion piece by Andreia Revez, a nutritionist at TO BE. Clínica by Teresa Branco
